The present invention relates generally to remote controls and, more particularly, to a remote control having a touch pad operable in a pad-to-screen mapping mode for highlighting preselected parts of a slide displayed on a display screen.
Home entertainment (HE), computer, communications, video recording, presentation, and other devices include a display screen for displaying slides, images, pictures, etc. Such HE devices include televisions. Such computer devices include desktop and laptop computers. Such communications devices include hand-held cellular telephones and personal digital assistants. Such video recording devices include digital cameras and personal video recorders. Such presentation devices include slide projectors.
Operators may use remote controls to control the devices remotely. Operators often use remote controls in conjunction with the display screens of the devices to control the devices. For instance, the display screens may have a cursor which the operator can navigate remotely by manipulating the remote control to control the device. Typically, remote controls include a set of buttons which correspond to control functions of a device. Touch pads and other position sensing devices have been incorporated into remote controls to provide the operator with greater control functionality. Touch pads sense the position of an object such as the operator""s finger or stylus touching the touch pad and convey the position information to the device. In response, an object on the display screen such as a cursor may move in correspondence with the position of the object touching the touch pad.
An operator may use the display screen of a device to present slides or images on the display screen to an audience. For instance, an operator may use a software program such as the PowerPoint(trademark) graphics presentation program by Microsoft Corporation(trademark) to generate and present slides, images, etc., on the display screens of the devices for an audience to view. This graphic presentation program allows the operator to generate different slides and then display each individual slide on the display screen of a device for presentation to an audience. Typically, the operator may use a remote control to remotely control the device to display selected slides on the display screen during the presentation. During the presentation the operator may need to draw attention to a particular part of a slide being displayed on the display screen.
Typical graphics presentation programs allow an operator to associate highlighting techniques with a particular or specific part, point, portion, attribute, etc., of a slide for drawing attention to the particular part. The highlighting techniques include a color change, blinking or brightening effect, animated builds, check marks, underlining, etc., for drawing audience attention to particular parts of the slides. The operator uses the graphics presentation programs to build the slides and associate highlighting techniques with particular parts of the slides in a prescribed sequence as the operator prepares the slides for presentation. The operator then controls the device with the remote control to execute the highlighting of a particular part of a slide during the presentation. A problem is that once built into the slide presentation the highlighting of particular parts of the slides occurs in a prescribed sequence and during the presentation and the operator may want to change the highlighting sequence or not highlight specific parts of the slide at all. As a result, the operator loses flexibility and spontaneity during the presentation because the highlighting occurs in a prescribed sequence.
One approach to minimize this problem is to have the remote control configured with some sort of pointing device such as a laser pointer for drawing attention to specific parts of a slide. A problem with this approach is that the laser pointer does not draw audience attention as well as the highlighting techniques described above.
What is needed is a remote control having a touch pad in which preselected parts of slides to be displayed on a display screen of a device during a presentation are mapped to the touch pad such that the operator can touch a portion of the touch pad to highlight the preselected slide part corresponding to the touch pad portion being touched when the slide is being displayed on the display screen of the device during a presentation.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method and system for presenting slides in which touch pad portions of a touch pad are mapped to preselected parts of a presented slide such that a preselected part of the presented slide is highlighted in response to the corresponding touch pad portion being touched.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a remote control having a touch pad operable in a pad-to-screen mapping mode for highlighting preselected parts of a slide displayed on a display screen.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a remote control having a touch pad operable for mapping portions of the touch pad to preselected parts of a slide such that a remote control operator can highlight a preselected part of the slide displayed on a display screen by touching the touch pad portion corresponding to the preselected part of the slide.
In carrying out the above objects and other objects, the present invention provides a system for presenting slides. The system includes a display screen and a touch pad. The display screen is operable for displaying a slide. The touch pad has touch pad portions mapped to respective preselected parts of the slide. The touch pad is operable with the display screen such that a preselected part of the slide is highlighted in response to the touch pad portion corresponding to the preselected part of the slide being touched. The preselected parts of the slide are preselected by an operator.
The display screen may be the display screen of a home entertainment (HE) device, a television, a computer, a slide projector, a video projector, a communications device such as a cellular telephone or a personal digital assistant, or a video recording device such as a camera or a personal video recorder. The touch pad may be remotely operable with the display screen and may be the touch pad of a remote control.
Further, in carrying out the above objects and other objects, the present invention provides a system for presenting slides. The system includes associating means such as a software program for enabling an operator to associate highlighting with preselected parts of slides, and a display screen operable for displaying the slides one at a time. The system further includes a touch pad operable with the device and the display screen for mapping touch pad portions to the preselected parts of a slide being displayed on the display screen. The touch pad is further operable with the display screen for highlighting a preselected part of the slide being displayed on the display screen in response to the touch pad portion corresponding to the preselected part of the slide being touched. The touch pad may be remotely operable with the display screen for highlighting the preselected parts of the slide being displayed on the display screen.
Also, in carrying out the above objects and other objects, the present invention provides a method for presenting a slide using a remote control having a touch pad. The method includes preselecting parts of a slide for highlighting and associating highlighting with the preselected parts of the slide. Touch pad portions are then mapped to the preselected parts of the slide. The slide is then displayed on a display screen. A preselected part of the slide is then highlighted in response to the touch pad portion corresponding to the preselected part of the slide being touched.
The method may further include preselecting parts of at least two slides for highlighting, associating highlighting with the preselected parts of the at least two slides, mapping touch pad portions to the preselected parts of the at least two slides, and displaying the at least two slides on the display screen one at a time.
In carrying out the above objects and other objects, the present invention further provides a remote control for controlling a display screen displaying a slide. The remote control includes a position sensing device operable for mapping position sensing device portions to preselected parts of a slide being displayed on the display screen. The position sensing device is further operable for highlighting a preselected part of the slide being displayed on the display screen in response to the position sensing device portion corresponding to the preselected part of the slide being touched. The position sensing device may be a touch pad.
The above objects and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best mode for carrying out the present invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.